Kendal is learning to recognize numbers and Kason is learning to add them.
Preschool
For science this week we learned about the layers of the earth. We demonstrated using boiled eggs.
Layers of the earth cake! Fun and tasty!
I LOVE sharing what works because I LOVE homeschooling my children, and sharing that joy and passion with others. Join in with Tristan over at Our Busy Homeschool for the linkup.
So this is Semester 2 Week 3, what's working for us?
Pinterest has been so useful! I have found so many great teaching ideas that I can easily categorize and quickly retrieve. My pinterest page.
Institute of Excellence in Writing Webinars
IEW is pricey and I've researched it for many years trying to determine how valuable it really would be in our homeshool. Well this past summer I borrowed it and watched the entire course, and was sold! This is 1 product that is really worth all the hype. Your children will learn to write, and write superbly. This week I introduced Unit 6 and had him watch the free webinar. It's an hour long and teaches him everything he needs to know. I plan on purchasing Teaching Writing with Structure and Style. This kids and I will watch this again, and again.
I will say I tried to get around purchasing this course, but there is really no substitute. I listened to his mp3's and even bought a student book for $10 and tried to implement the program, but it didn't work. The core course is really necessary to successfully implement the program. After teaching this course now for a few months I have wished weekly, that I had the DVD's to refer to, even though I took more than 10 pages worth of notes when I watched it in the summer. Writing composition is an essential life-long skill and well worth the investment!
I love getting to be a fly on someone else's homeschool wall, so I'm joining Tristan at Our Busy Homeschool to share one day in our homeschool. Welcome to our day...unedited!
12:38am-fed baby
4:00am-fed baby
5:30am- fed baby, prayed, checked blogs, take asthma med, try to go back to sleep
6:45am-Got up, put diapers in dryer, fill washer
7:00am-pick library books to read for today
7:07am-My quiet time
7:25am-publish 2 blog posts
8am-feed and change baby, wake kids up, kids have their quiet times, laundry, personal care, quick chores, breakfast
9:25-start individual school. Kyle does IEW(writing composition) I edited and had him watch webinar for clarification
Kyle writing
computer work, I think this is after I changed his clothes b/c of an accident
spelling/dictation
one-on-one instruction
12:30-lunch is leftover dinner: fish, mac and cheese, veg.
1pm-Kyle does Saxon Math. I do some review on the board with him, and then he does his problem set. I read library books to the twins on volcano's. Kason is at the computer.
Baby is napping
Kendal is napping which is very rare
laundry accumulates until the end of the day when we fold and put away
3:13-Kyle read Around the World in 80 Days, and the younger kids did math
3:40-clean up and snack
5:00-Shower/fold and put away laundry. 2 people shower, 2 people fold, and then switch roles.
7:00-finish baths and laundry
7:30 -kids eat. I don't usually eat with the kids at the table. It's overstimulating. I justify it with the fact that I spend every other waking moment with them!...I just need a little peace for my mental health. Just keepin' it real!
Goodnight
- Began second semester
- Kyle's new reading books: The Giver, Animal Farm, Shades of Gray, and Around the World in 80 days
- Kyle began Unit 5 from Institute of Excellence in Writing; Writing from Pictures a unit on descriptive writing.
The twins do most of their spelling and dictation exercises on the big white board. I can easily see what each of them is doing, and work with Kason at the table simultaneously. It is the biggest hassle finding and keeping sharpened pencils around here, not to mention pencil sharpeners and staplers have a ridiculously short life span in my house. Why...I don't know
This week from Hands on Science Mysteries the kids had to find the source behind the Bubonic Plague. As an exercise they studied the predator-prey relationship. Here they are cutting out animals and lining up prey and predators. They also watched some cool predator videos on Netflix.
Kason working on writing. This week he finally learned how to write his "s" in the write direction!
Kyle working independently. (Writing, typing, math games, ixl math, spanish)
Kids volcanoes which we later erupted!!! Lots of fun. Plus a couple of volcano videos on Netflix.
cutie pie :-)
This is where she spends most of the school day, and if ever I had a secret to "getting it all done", this would be it.
- We started our Geography Studies this month. Every child picked a country and we're studying it together. Youngest student goes first; Kason picked Israel. I bought an Israel lapbook and we are slowly going through that. It is fun and we're learning a lot. We also got lots of books and a couple of videos from the library on Israel. Lapbooks take enough time as there is, now, I only use free lapbooks which there are a ton of free ones at homeschool share, or I buy one. But no more, making my own. Time IS money.
- Kyle is taking a break from Rosetta Stone. I have him working on StudySpanish.com for grammar. There is a lot of debate about whether you should teach grammar or not. But on their website they articulated exactly what I've observed, which is; you can learn in a few days with grammar what would take you months to learn by immersion. I downloaded the Duolingo app for him, which also reinforces grammar.
